I like the left column’s offerings and the second from the top on the right, for the same reason Edd mentions. If we go from any of the left column examples other than the top one I would also like the ‘swoosh’ included and think that if added it would give the logo a little zip.

Once again, the real questions are turned into “what’s prettier”? The large logos are not compatible with the social medias whilst the more rectangular ones, are. Personally, if it was just for the esthetics, I’d go for the bottom one in the right column.
But the question of what does LabourStart really mean or symbolize, which means taking into account a second slogan space, is not materialized by any of these models (thanks and acknowledgements to whoever did the work).
In French, “labour” translates to “labourer” which still has agricultural origins and does not evoke work (travail). Start is easily pronounced “star”, especially by unionists with no knowledge of English. “Star” is an anglicisme as in filmstar (vedette, acteur, actrice). So are we “workstars” or what? How can we use 2 or 3 words in each of our 23 languages to explain clearly what we do and who we are? Where do we place this slogan so that it integrates harmoniously with the logo?
I’d be interested to know what the designer and the other translators think on this.

I like top left with swoosh but think the grey of ‘Labour’could be sharper using the font of ‘start’ but in black – bit similar to bottom left

Comment | April 8, 2013

Adam Lee

Is LabourStart primarily a news source or a campaign tool? The name “LabourStart, Where trade unionists start their day on the net.” suggests to me more news source, like your morning paper online. However I visit LabourStart when I receive the emails asking me to participate in a campaign. I learn about the struggle through the email from LabourStart, then participate through sending an email to the target. Is the aim of the site to promote itself as a daily news source or a vehicle for using the net to win justice for workers? If the answer is the latter or if the answer is both, perhaps think about not just new logo but new name?

Honestly I’m sure they’re all well intended but as design you can do something that’s unique, memorable and striking. These sadly are not. All commercial – they could be advertising a corner shop or a newsagent, I could suggest a young graphics guy who’s done work for us that’s of an impressive imaginative standard. If this prospect has interest, he’s:
Stuart Whyte (http://www.stuartwhytedesign.com ) at whytestuart@hotmail.com
We hve a number of other candidates,b ut all I think would charge a lot. If you’re intereted I can provide names etc.
Best
G

The logos with drop shadows look very dated and won’t translate well into black and white e.g. when you’re printing a monochrome banner or when using it on a fax. I don’t really like the swoosh logo (second column, second row) because swooshes seem a bit overused on logos. They don’t really add more value to a logo.

The nicest to me on the one of the first column, second row. It’s simple and looks like the most elegant one.

I agree with Andy that the other logos can’t translate well into social media but neither can the ones on the bottom right because they won’t be visible in small sizes e.g. when used in Twitter. It’s best to come up with an icon/symbol as part of the logo to symbolise Labour Start. An alternative is to come up with a shorter/initial version of the logo e.g. “LS” that can be used on Twitter.

Comment | April 8, 2013

Lary Kuehn

Have you considered and rejected the idea of making the web address a part of the logo?

Comment | April 8, 2013

Peter Watson

I used to try and live in pods.One man who was there could not cope with a red pod because he associated it with blood.
So just maybe the red colour should be on Start not Labour.

Sorry to say, but all of the designs offered are dated–font and treatment, e.g., Roman type, words in ital.

The only logo that shows some connection with 21st century design is the top right one. It won’t work as is, but it might if “start” was a darker red.

Overall, I would suggest resisting the temptation many U.S. unions embrace, which is to visually harken back to “tradition” or the “good old days” and so alienate the very young people the movement so desperately needs to survive.

Comment | April 8, 2013

Tim Evanson

The first in the left-hand column, and the first two in the right-hand column, are my preferences. Graphic design research shows that curves, swooshes, and so forth give the impression of energy and forward movement — exactly what we want to convey.

My personal preference is for the first on the left-hand column, although I dislike the grey color and shadowing.

I would suggest a very crisp, clean font. Something sans-serif, which tends to show up better on computer screens and looks crisp even at small font sizes. (I like Century Gothic, but others find it too round and modernist looking.) Keep the font color for “Labour” in pure black, and don’t futz too much with it.

Comment | April 8, 2013

Ramiro R. Gongora

I think the top left shows a more appealing look. That would be my choice.

Comment | April 8, 2013

Molly McGrath

I agree with Tula…the top right one is the best option and looks modern-ish. Also I do think also that a “LS” is necessary and would be cool for Twitter. I had a graphic designer friend design the LS Turkce on here (http://www.facebook.com/LabourStartTurkce) as a logo for the Turkish page because Labourstart Turkce is too many letters for a logo. Also, using LS more would eliminate discrepancy of the British v. American English use of “u” in labour.

Visually, I prefer the first (upper left), but the last (lower right) would work if half of text were in black.

To address the concerns raised by Andy, a slogan that might work well in most languages might be simply “Global Labor Solidarity.”

Comment | April 8, 2013

Matthew Allen

I like the top left one.

Comment | April 9, 2013

Espen

I like it clean and simple, and prefer left column, especially nr 2 or 5.
And I agree that we could use the opportunity to discuss the slogan.
A slogan should be short – what about “Stronger workers” or something in that direction?